finding delight

 Of David.
1 Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
be not envious of wrongdoers!
2 For they will soon fade like the grass
and wither like the green herb.

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good;
dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5 Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him, and he will act.
6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
and your justice as the noonday.

7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
over the man who carries out evil devices!

8 Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.
9 For the evildoers shall be cut off,
but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.

10 In just a little while, the wicked will be no more;
though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there.
11 But the meek shall inherit the land
and delight themselves in abundant peace.

12 The wicked plots against the righteous
and gnashes his teeth at him,
13 but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
for he sees that his day is coming.

14 The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows
to bring down the poor and needy,
to slay those whose way is upright;
15 their sword shall enter their own heart,
and their bows shall be broken.

16 Better is the little that the righteous has
than the abundance of many wicked.
17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
but the Lord upholds the righteous.

18 The Lord knows the days of the blameless,
and their heritage will remain forever;
19 they are not put to shame in evil times;
in the days of famine they have abundance.

20 But the wicked will perish;
the enemies of the Lord are like the glory of the pastures;
they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.

21 The wicked borrows but does not pay back,
but the righteous is generous and gives;
22 for those blessed by the Lord shall inherit the land,
but those cursed by him shall be cut off.

23 The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
when he delights in his way;
24 though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
for the Lord upholds his hand.

25 I have been young, and now am old,
yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
or his children begging for bread.
26 He is ever lending generously,
and his children become a blessing.

27 Turn away from evil and do good;
so shall you dwell forever.
28 For the Lord loves justice;
he will not forsake his saints.
They are preserved forever,
but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
29 The righteous shall inherit the land
and dwell upon it forever.

30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
and his tongue speaks justice.
31 The law of his God is in his heart;
his steps do not slip.

32 The wicked watches for the righteous
and seeks to put him to death.
33 The Lord will not abandon him to his power
or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial.

34 Wait for the Lord and keep his way,
and he will exalt you to inherit the land;
you will look on when the wicked are cut off.

35 I have seen a wicked, ruthless man,
spreading himself like a green laurel tree.
36 But he passed away, and behold, he was no more;
though I sought him, he could not be found.

37 Mark the blameless and behold the upright,
for there is a future for the man of peace.
38 But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;
the future of the wicked shall be cut off.

39 The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
he is their stronghold in the time of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him.

Psalm 37

While examining this Psalm, I was struck by how different it is from most of the other Psalms I have been reading lately. Although David wrote it, this Psalm may seem more at home amongst the Proverbs for it carries words of wisdom for our instruction. I would like to focus today on three simple concepts from the first few verses.

1. Trust in the Lord

This is the ultimate exhortation to faith. Whether we are struggling with issues of doubt or issues with sin, it all comes down to whether or not your trust is in Him. The life of the Christian is built around trust. We trust that whatever needs that we may have that He will provide. We trust that He is faithful and that He will hold to His promise for those that Love Him. But most of all, we trust in His grace. That He will provide even the means in us to trust in Him when we are lacking.

2. Delight yourself in the Lord

This is not the theology of the church of today that gives us riches by proclaiming His name. No, it is far better than that. The second half of the verse promises “the desires of your heart”. What are the desires of the heart for those that delight in the Lord? Well, it is to live a life that is pleasing to him. It is not riches of this earth that we truly desire but to know and be known by Him that gave us life. That is the desire of my heart and I delight in the thought that He has promised to give that to me.

3. Commit your way to the Lord

I can not help but think of James 4:8 and Zechariah 1:3 when I read this. But perhaps it is better captured by what Jesus said in John 15:14- “You are my friends if you do what I command.” I like the way this is phrased as well. The writer has not asked us to commit our hearts or ourselves but our way. Walk as He walked and do as he did and the Lord will act. In this we can be true followers of “the way”.

Lord, I pray today that I can trust in You in all that I do and that I can find all my delight in You. Help me to commit my way to You Lord and give me the strength necessary to walk as You have shown us.

- BDS